Published: January 06, 2009 10:33 am      

New scam in town

It looks like a check for $4,500.

But it isn’t.

A Cooke County resident received the check along with a letter in a plain white envelope bearing no return address.

The notice — which is written to the attention of no one specifically — begins, “We are pleased to advice (sic) you that you are one of the winners in the second category of Sweepstakes and Lottery Draw held on June 1, 2008...”

The notice goes on to say the woman won a total of $450,000 “payable by bank draft or certified check.”

It also included a check.

The check is printed on white paper with a pale brown background and is dated Dec. 22, 2008.

It contains what appear to be a series of routing numbers on the lower edge.

At a glance, the check appears to be drawn on a legitimate U.S. Company — AT&T.

However, the woman who got the letter wasn’t fooled by it.

She said she wants to make sure others who may have also received the “sweepstakes checks” do not deposit them into their bank accounts.

Stephen Sims, an official with Prosperity Bank verified out the legality of the check.

Looking at the check, Sims said he sees several things wrong with it.

“Notice the routing number,” he said, pointing out the digits on the bottom of the check. “The routing number should always be nine digits. This one is just eight.”

A routing number, he explained, is also sometimes called a routing transit number or ABA number.

Bankers can tell a lot by looking at these numbers.

Used in the United States, the number identifies the financial institution on which the check is drawn. The code is also used by Federal Reserve Banks to process Fedwire transfers and by the automated clearing house to process direct deposits and other automated transfers.

Sims also pointed out another characteristic of the check which identifies it as bogus.

It bears the name “AT&T Family FCU” and lists Asheboro, North Carolina as the bank of origin.

“A lot of times they’ll throw a (well-known) company name on the check to try to legitimize it,” he said. “It says AT&T Family FCU. What does that mean? It’s just another way to try to make the check appear legitimate.”

He said the number in the upper right hand side of the check is another hint of a scam.

“You’ll notice this check has an excessively long check number. That’s to make it look as if the company has written thousands of checks,” he said.

The check also contains a watermark.

Watermarks and other security devices are easily duplicated and aren’t necessarily an indication that the check is authentic, he noted.

The letter which accompanied the check lists a telephone number. The “winner” is instructed to call the number for instructions on claiming the $450,000 prize.

“Call for further instructions on how to claim your winnings. Please do not act on this notice until you speak to your agent,” the notice states.

A Google search for the origin of the phone number revealed the company claiming to hold the lottery winnings is not in North Carolina as both the letter and the check imply.

The phone number originates in Canada.

When the number is called, the person who answers the phone is quick to explain how the contest works.

“It is true you did win $450,000 by a consumer reward program,” the individual said. “In order for you to get the rest of the money you are required to pay some taxes. We have deducted a part of the taxes from the money that you won,” she said.

Collecting the money is easy, the phone operator said.

“You are going to deposit the check and give it two days to clear. Then you will call me back and get the name of your claims agent who will tell you how to pay the taxes to get the rest of money,” she said.

Sims said he and other bank employees see the scam fairly often.

“Unfortunately, (this type of scam) turns up from time to time. Most people, when they get something like this, put it right into the shredder. Another small group might talk about it with friends and relatives and decide to do nothing. Others, just a few people, will actually come in with the check and try to put it in their account,” he said.

Sims has some advice for anyone who receives a check out of the blue.

“Above all else, if you get a check you were not expecting, 99.99 percent of the time, it’s fraud. If someone does get something they aren’t sure about, they should ask someone at their bank,” he said, adding bank employees are trained to spot bogus checks.